EB Realty retires construction debt for North Broad projects

EB Realty Management Corp. has secured $70 million in financing for three of its projects along North Broad Street in Philadelphia.

The funds will be used to retire maturing construction debt at the Divine Lorraine, the Studebaker and Head House Flats, projects that EB Realty has been redeveloping. It will also provide money for tenant fit-out costs as well as future funding for the construction of ten more apartment units in an annex building at the Divine Lorraine, according to D2 Capital Advisors, an East Norriton company that arranged the financing.

The funding was provided by Guggenheim CREF, Susquehanna Investment Group, and the Philadelphia Redevelopment Authority. The money consisted of a mix of senior, mezzanine and structured credit financing.

Earlier this year, EB Realty received a $56 million loan to redevelop the Metropolitan Opera House on North Broad. The Met, which was built in 1908 by Oscar Hammerstein but had been in a state of decline for decades. The financing was also arranged by D2 Capital.

The Philadelphia real estate company has been active along North Broad Street since 2004 when it bought 640 N. Broad St. It spent $50 million converting what once housed the famed design firm of Albert and Pearl Nippon into 265 loft apartments and Osteria, a critically acclaimed Italian restaurant, as its main retail tenant. EB Realty later bought 600 N. Broad St. and spent $40 million on a mixed-use project at the property called Lofts 600. Over the last two years, the company ramped up its commitment to the corridor with the redevelopment of the Divine Lorraine, the Met and other projects.